Out of the Darkness
by songs-in-sunshine
Summary: Two 16 year old girls escape from their orphanage in Queens and go to Manhattan, where they meet the Newsies
1. Breakaway

"Girls! Girls! Get into bed immediately!" screamed Miss. Mulberry, the headmistress of the Kellington Orphanage.

She was a fat, hunched over, mid-aged woman,

with dark, graying hair. Among the orphans she was the cruelest lady in Queens, New York. As Miss. Mulberry's voice echoed throughout the halls, girls of all ages

stormed out of the washroom and into their worn, tattered beds. The room was long and cold and each bed was perfectly aligned across from each other on each side of the room.

Miss. Mullberry stood at the door, counting the girls to make sure they were all present. When her eyes fell upon two empty beds at the end of the row, her eyebrows rose.

"Maura! Kelly! You hooligans!"

Meanwhile:

Maura and Kelly were on their way back to the dreadful building they called an orphanage. They walked side by side. Maura was about 5'6 in height.

She had long brown hair and green eyes. Kelly was about 5'7 with dirty blond hair and blue eyes. Both were sixteen years of age.

"That was great! I love going to shows in Manhattan." Said Maura. "Yeah, that was one of our greatest sneak-outs ever!" replied Kelly. As the years passed by at the orphanage,

both girls received the reputation for escaping the orphanage.

They arrived in front of the huge metal gates which surrounded the orphanage. It was a dark and dreary building with long green vines covering the exterior. The yard was unkempt, the chilly November air blowing dead leaves along the tall, un-cut grass. The only light that shown within the grounds were the glistening candles in the dirty, tinted windows.

Maura and Kelly found a loose board in the fence and went threw, quietly tip-toeing to the side window. As they neared the building, a dark figure loomed on the front step.

"Have a nice night girls?" Said Miss. Mulberry. Maura and Kelly practically jumped a mile as they heard the stern voice of their headmistress. "Follow me." she said coldly as both girls eyed each other with a worried look.

Maura and Kelly sat in the musty office of Miss. Mulberry. She came close to the girls' faces. "I'm appalled at you!" she said as some of her spit shot on to Maura's face.

"You have done this one time too many. Frankly, I'm sick of it. I have already called the police and they will be picking you both up early tomorrow morning. I can not have

you hooligans running around on our fine streets. Now get out of my site!" Yelled Miss. Mulberry as she shooed the girls from her office.

The girls got up and walked out of her office. "I'm not rotting the rest of my life in prison!" said Maura.

"What are we gonna do?!"

"I think we should get outta here. We can wait till everyone's asleep. We'll go to Manhattan and make new lives."

"Do you think we can pull it off?"

"It's the only way. So we escape… Tonight!"


	2. The Start of Something New

It was as quiet as a mouse in the old orphanage. The clock struck three am and everyone was asleep... everyone except for Maura and Kelly.

They quietly crept from their covers and gathered their most important belongings.

"Are you sure we should do this?" said Kelly.

"Yes…unless you want to rot in prison with the rats," said Maura.

"Ok…Lets just do this before that lard ass hears us!"

They went to the window and shimmied down the thick vines that covered the orphanage. When they reached about halfway down the vine, Maura lost her grip of the vine and dropped into the dead bushes.

"Maura! What's wrong with you! You moron," Kelly yelled.

When Kelly reached the ground, she walked over to where Maura was laying.

"Owww," Maura moaned as she looked up at Kelly. "You idiot." Kelly said. She helped Maura up and they returned to the same loose board in the fence as before. They climbed threw and started on their journey.

"Manhattan...Here we come..."

When they finally reached Manhattan, their legs ached and they needed rest.

They were now standing in the center of the city by the old Horace Greenly Statue.

"My legs hurt," Kelly said. "Mine too. Let's stop for awhile." Maura said.

"Do you think anyone will come out looking for us?" Kelly asked.

"I dunno. Hopefully they won't find us here. Anytime you see the bulls, just run" she replied.

They walked over to the large statue of Horace sitting on a chair. They climbed on its base.

"Well I guess we can sleep up here for the night," Maura said.

"I call the bottom," Kelly replied.

Maura climbed on top of the statue's lap and Kelly slept by his feet on the base. 

"Well this is comfortable!" Maura said, sarcastically.

"Yeah, this'll do wonders on my back. Well, good-night."

"Night."

The sun was shining brightly as Miss. Mulberry entered the dormitories to retrieve Maura and Kelly. She had two officers with her to take them away.

"Get up you lazy bones! Get in Order" Miss. Mulberry yelled at the girls as she stormed in the room.

The girls had worried glances as they arose from their slumber. They had noticed that Maura and Kelly had gone and were afraid of the consequences they would have to face. The girls stood at the foot of their beds. Miss. Mulberry barked orders as she passed.

"You! Straighten your shoulders! You! Comb your hair back!"

When she approached Maura and Kelly's beds she saw that they were not present. Her dark eyes widened.

"Where are they?!" she screamed.

"They were missing since this morning," one of the girls said.

"That's it. You will all search high and low. I want them found!"

"I've never seen them around here before," said one of three boys who stood over the Horace Greenly statue.

Hearing voices around them, Kelly and Maura began to wake-up. Their eyes slowly opened.

"You took me bed, doll!" said one of the boys a little too closely to Kelly's face.

They boys loudness caused her to jump up and stumble off the base.

"Ow! Damnit!" she cried as she lay on the cobblestone street.

"We sorry, Miss! We didn't mean ta' scare ya like dat'. I'm Snipeshooter and dese' are me pals Boots and Les. Here, let me give you a hand," said the boy as he held out his hand to her.

"Thanks. I'm Kelly and this is Maura," she said.

Maura jumped down from the statue and shook all of the boys' hands.

"So…what are you goyls doin out here in da streets?" Snipeshooter asked.

"Uhh…we got kicked out of our school so we decided to come here to find jobs," Maura lied.

"Well we's can get you a job as a newsie with us." Boots said.

"What the hell is that?" Kelly asked as she and Maura exchanged crooked grins.

"Ya Kiddin' me right? You'se have never heard of da' Newsies? Well we sell papes for Mr. Pulitzer."

"Ooh… so you sell _newspapers, _I get it!" Kelly said.

"Yeah…so anyway. You can get us a job?" Maura asked, ignoring Kelly's last comment.

"Yeah. We'll take you to Cowboy. He can help you." Boots replied.

"Wait…who's that?! I'm lost," Kelly asked as she looked at Maura with a confused look.

"Cowboy is the Newsie leader. He is like the boss. His real name is Jack Kelly. Last year he led the Newsie strike against Pulitzer! He can help you with the job," said Les.

"Well I think I think we wanna meet this famous Jack Kelly…so take us to him boys!" said Maura.

The three boys led the girls down the street to a large building that read "Lodging House".

To Be Continued 

**Please Review!! **


	3. Meeting the Boys

Maura and Kelly followed Snipeshooter, Les, and Boots through the lodging house doors. They walked up the rickety, old staircase, which led to a bunkroom filled with noisy newsboys. The older newsies, who were from fourteen to seventeen years of age, were sitting on the bunkbeds playing cards. The younger boys were playing with their wooden swords throughout the room.

When the five walked into the room, silence fell among the group and everyone froze. Les ran up to a teenage boy who wore a red bandana around his neck.

"Jack! Jack! Come 'ere! We gotta show you something," Les said.

Jack and the older newsboys rose from the bunk and walked over to Maura and Kelly.

"Cowboy, dis is Maura and Kelly. We found them dis mornin and they said dat dey is lookin for a job," said Boots.

"Maybe you should let dem talk for demselves, Boots," Jack said as he circled the two girls.

"So ladies, is dere somethin I can help ya with?" Jack asked them.

"Well we got kicked out of our school so we need a job and these boys here said that you could help us," Maura replied.

"Okay…so what are your names?" he asked.

"I'm Maura and this is Kelly," she said.

"Hi!" Kelly chimed in.

Maura raised her eyebrows and gave Kelly a weird look.

"SO ANYWAY…"

"Okay well I'm Jack Kelly. You'se could be a newsie wit us if you want to," he said.

"Well we don't exactly know how to do that yet," said Kelly.

"Well you'se guys can stick with me and I'll show ya how it's done," he responded as he pushed his light brown hair out of his eyes.

Jack was a tall guy and stood at about 6'1. He wore a dark vest with a gray shirt. A cowboy hat was strung around his neck along with his bandana. He had strong facial features with a fair complexion and soft, brown eyes. Maura took a liking in him immediately.

"So dese are all da newsboys. This is Kid Blink, Skittery, Race, Crutchy, and Mush," he said as he pointed out each of them. Each of them said hello and tipped their cabby hats.

After introductions, Jack led everyone downstairs to see Kloppman, the lodging house runner. He gave the girls their own separate bunkroom to sleep in with a small washroom inside as well.

Then they all went outside and followed Jack to a stand behind large gates.

"So dis is where we buy our papes every mornin," Jack said as he rang the large bell which hung above the stand.

A fat, obnoxious looking man appeared behind the counter.

"Mornin Mister President. I'm here for my papes if you please…_Weasel_," Jack said.

"For the zillionth time…It's Mr._Wisel_!" he stated.

Suddenly, two teenage boys walked up behind Kelly and Maura.

"Oh… Hiya Oscar…Morris. Aren't you two lookin swell this mornin," Jack said, sarcastically.

"Hiya Cowboy. So who's ya friends?" Oscar said, pointing to Maura and Kelly.

"I don't think dat's any of ya business boys," Jack said.

Oscar and Morris began to walk away.

"We'll deal wit you later Cowboy…and we'll be talkin to you two cupcakes very soon," They said as they gestured to the two girls.

"Who were they?" Kelly asked.

"Oh dey are just da scabs. You don't have ta worry about dem," said Skittery.

Skittery was about 6' ft. He had dark brown hair and hazel eyes. He was wearing a cabby hat. Kelly was attracted to his manly features.

Each of the Newsies spotted Maura and Kelly some money so they could buy their first stack of papes. Everyone parted their own separate ways. Jack, Maura, Kelly, and Skittery decided to sell papes together.

Maura and Kelly quickly learned how to sell papers from Jack and Skittery. After a very long morning, the four of them headed to Tibby's for some lunch.

When they walked through the doors of the restaurant, there were already several Newsies there.

"Ey' Fellas!" Jack said.

"Hiya Jack! How was ya day sellin papes?" said Crutchy, who carried a crutch under his right arm.

"It was good. Me and Skittery taught Mar and Kel here a thing or two about sellin dere papes," He replied and the four of them sat down at the table.

Suddenly a boy of about 18 years walked in through the doors with Les.

"Hey Where ya been today Dave?" Jack asked.

"I had to help my Pop at home. So who are these ladies?" David asked.

"Dis is Maura and Kelly. We found dem yesterday and dey decided to be Newsies Wit us," Jack replied.

"Nice to meet ya girls. I'm David Jacobs," he said.

"Hi I'm Kelly. This is Maura." She answered.

"So why did you girls become Newsies?" Dave asked and he pulled up a chair next to Jack.

"Well we got kicked out of our orphanage and we needed a job and a place to stay. Jack here taught us how to sell papes and that's our story basically," Maura said.

"Why'd ya get kicked out?" Les asked.

"Um…Well…. Why did we get kicked out again Kelly?" Maura said quickly.

"Oh well, we uh were getting too old and they needed more space for other orphans," said Kelly.

"So how old are ya," Jack asked.

"We are both 16. How old are you guys?" Kelly asked.

"Well I'm 18, and so are Skittery and David. Mush, Racetrack, Kid Blink, and Crutchy are all 17. And little Les over here is 10," Jack replied.

"So what do you boy's do for fun around here?" Maura questioned.

"Well we love goin to Medda's down da street. She is a vaudeville star who happens to be Jack's friend, so she lets us come in and watch the shows a lot." Skittery said.

"That does sound fun. Mar and I love vaudeville shows," Kelly said.

"Well den we will have ta take ya dere soon," said Jack.

All of the Newsies spent the afternoon at the restaurant. When it started to get dark, they all made their way back to the lodging house.

"Here goyls, We'll walk you to your room," Jack said as he and Skittery led them to their bunkroom.

"Thanks boys. We had a great day. Sweet dreams," Kelly said.

"Night!" The boys said in unison.

Kelly shut the door and jumped onto her bunk.

"God Mar! They are Cute! Especially that Skittery!" Kelly said a little too excited.

"Oh I know! And what about Jack! I so call him!" Maura replied.

"Yea he is too. Fine, then I get Skittery. You know, I could really get used to this Newsie thing," Kelly replied.

"Well I am so tired. I'm gonna hit the sac. Night Kel," Maura said.

"Night."

Newsies of all ages were running around the bunkroom getting ready for bed. The older ones were sitting on Jack's bed playing a card game, like earlier.

"Come on! Come on! I'll roll ya for it double or nuttin!" said Race, who was always looking for a good bet.

"So Jack, how do ya like da new newsie goyls?" Kid Blink asked.

"Dey are somethin, aren't they?" Jack replied.

"Yea im glad dey decided to work wit us," said Mush.

"I think I found my new sellin partner for life!" said Skittery, as he walked out of the washroom. "Kelly and I were gettin along so well."

"Yea me too! Dat Maura's an angel," said Jack with a smile on his face.

To Be Continued 

**Please Review!**


	4. A Glorious Morning

A voice echoed through the lodging house. "Get Up!! When I say get up you have to get up!!" Kloppman yelled. The boys groaned and started to get out of their beds. 

"Hiya Jack!! Where are da goyls?" Crutchy asked.

"Dey must not have gotten up yet. I'll get dem," He replied.

He walked down the hall to the girls' room. His hair was tousled and he only wore his white under shorts.

"Hey goyls you up yet?" Jack asked. When he received no answer, he quietly opened the door and peeked in. Both Kelly and Maura were still asleep. Jack walked over to Maura's bed side and tapped her.

"Maura!! You'se gotta get up!!" he said. Her eyes slowly opened. She looked up at Jack and then did a double take at his beautifully built body. Jack eyed her as she stared up at him.

"Jack! Hi! Oh crap we overslept. Don't worry we will be ready in a sec!" Maura said groggily. Jack left the room. Maura walked over to Kelly's bed and woke her.

"Kelly! Rise and Shine, Lazy Bones!! You just missed the greatest thing ever!"

Kelly began to rise out of her bed.

"What could possibly be more important than sleep right now?!" she said in a sleepy tone.

"Well Jack came in here to wake us up for work…Shirtless. And let me just say…it was good." Maura said excitedly.

"That's great. Anyway…let's get ready for work." They went into their washroom and prepared for the day.

Once they finished, they walked out of their bunkroom and into the boy's room. Fortunately for them, the boys were not finished getting dressed yet. Skittery walked out of the boy's washroom, also half dressed. "Mornin' Kelly!….and Maura," he said.

"WOAH BABY!!" Kelly screamed. Maura looked at her and elbowed her in the side. "I…I mean…Morning!!" she screamed again.

All of the boys looked at them smugly and went about their business.

Once everyone was prepared to sell their papes, they all met outside.

Skittery and Kelly walked side by side to the newspaper stand. "So are ya gonna sell papes wit' me again Kelly?" He asked her.

"Certainly" She replied.

"So me and Jack were thinking that wese could take ya to Medda's joint tonight." Skittery said.

"Great! That sounds fun. Back at the orphanage we would try to sneak out to see shows," Kelly replied.

"Ok well how bout' you guys get ready by seven thirty and den we can go," he replied.

"Ok, that sounds good," she said as they collected their papers and began walking down the street.

Meanwhile:  
"Extra! Extra! Man Jumps off Brooklyn Bridge and lives to tell the tale!!" Maura shouted. Several old men came and bought some papes from her.

"Well don't you learn fast," Jack said.

"What can I say? I had a good teacher," she replied giving him a wink. He smirked at her comment.

They went around Manhattan and sold all of their papes. It was almost noon.

"So I was thinkin' dat we could take you and Kelly to Medda's later," Jack suggested.

"I would like that a lot. You really know how to make people feel at home…not that we ever had one. So where else is there to go in this city?" Maura said.

"Well me and da boys like goin ta Brooklyn ta visit our pal Spot. I'd like ta introduce you and Kelly to him. Wese can see him after lunch," Jack answered.

Maura smiled at him and they continued their way down the street.

To be Continued

**Please Review!**


	5. Meeting Spot

Three hours later, around 11:30 am, Jack and Maura met up with Skittery and Kelly. They talked for a few minutes about their day and showed each other how much money they made. Then the four of them made their way to Brooklyn. 

"Are we THERE yet! My legs hurt...Hey Mar..wanna carry me the rest of the way?" Kelly said.

"Um...I am NOT lugging you all the way to Brooklyn ya oaf!"replied Maura.

"FINE!"

"Hey Kelly why don't ya get on me back? I'd be happy ta give ya' a lift." Skittery said.

After an hour and a half of walking, they finally made it to Brooklyn. They came to a long brown dock right near the Brooklyn bridge,where many teenage boys were diving into the water and swimming.

Maura suddenly gave Kelly a look that could mean one thing...HOT BOYS. She pulled her aside from skittery and Jack.

"Kelly! Look over there! At two o'clock!" she whispered. "Wow there are some handsome boys in this neck of the woods..." Kelly replied.

Jack and Skittery happened to see some of the guys eyeing Maura and Kelly.

"We better be careful Jacky Boy or one a dese' boys could take our goyl's from us." Skittery said.

"Yea I better warn da goyls to stay away from dem'."

Jack walked over to the girls who where standing at the edge of the dock.

"Umm goyls, for ya general safety i think it best that you don't chat wit da Brooklyn boys." He told them.

"Why not? they seem fine to me." Kelly said.

"Yea actually they seem pretty cute," Maura added watching curiously at Jack's reaction.

"Well dey' ain't cute. Dey are tough and not very friendly so don't you'se go taklin' to dem, ya hear?" he replied.

"Fine..ok. geez." Maura said. She smiled at his reaction.

The four of them walked further down when a boy with Sandy brown hair and a walking stick came up to Jack. He was wearing a grey cabby hat and had a slingshot in his back pocket. The smirk he wore across his face made him seem intimidating, even though he was shorter than most boys.

"Well if it ain't my old pals Jacky Boy and Skittery! Along with some fine lookin'ladies." he said.

"Hiya Spot. How ya been?" Jack said.

"I've been swell Cowboy. And what is your name sweetheart?" Spot asked Kelly.

"I'm Kelly and this is my best friend Maura." she said.

"Why I am da famous Spot Conlon and I run dese' parts. It is a pleasure ta meet ya." Spot said as he kissed their hands.

Skittery and Jack suddeny walked up closely behind the girls, showing their possessive sides.

"So Spot we just came ta introduce ya to da new newsie goyls. Dey are livin in da lodgin' house wit us now." said Jack.

"Well i think ill be comin' over dere' more often." Spot replied as he smiled at the girls.

"I have an idea. Why don't we'se get some lunch?" Skittery said, trying to change the subject away from the girls.

"Good Idea!" Kelly said.

After they ate, Skittery, Jack, Maura, and Kelly walked all the way home to Manhatten. Later in the evening, the girls dug through their small bags and found their nicest dresses to wear to Medda's.

"I am so excited about seeing a show tonight. I think we are gonna have so much fun." Maura said.

"I know. Jack and Skittery really know how to have a good time. Did you see how mad they were getting over Spot today? That was so cute" kelly replied.

"Oh i know!" she said as she buttoned up her dress.

Soon the girls finished dressing. They were wearing similar floor length dresses. Maura's was mint green and she wore half her hair pulled back with long flowing dark curls. Kelly's dress was lavender and she wore her hair down in tendrils.

Jack and Skittery came to the doorway.

"Woah! Hot and Heavy!...I..I mean You goyls look gorgeous!" Skittery said, with a blush forming on his cheeks.

"Yea definitely what he said," Jack said, not being able to take his eyes away.

"Why thank you boys." Maura and Kelly said together.

They left for Medda's. Two hours later they came home exhausted.

"Thanks boys we had a great time," Kelly said.

"Yea i loved it," Maura added.

"You're very welcome. We can take you goyls anytime," Jack said, "Well we all better get to bed.  
Sweet Dreams."

"Yea goodnight'" Skittery said.

"Night," both girls replied.


End file.
